Preserving with Pomona's Pectin: The Revolutionary Low-Sugar, High-Flavor Method for Crafting and Canning Jams, Jellies, Conserves, and More

After an intensive weekend of canning using recipes from several different sources, this is my new favorite in terms of ease, precision, and flavor. This is a full-color recipe book with one recipe per page. It offers substitution options for several of the recipes, making them quite versatile. All recipes are tested for safety and deliciousness. Quantities of fruit are given in weights, with a conversion chart for people who don't like using weight. There's also a secondary measuring step for pulp after preparing the fruit (at least in all the recipes I tried), which means you always end up with the right acidity, sweetness, and volume. Speaking of volume, most of Duffy's recipes make 4-5 half pint jars. In the recipes I tested, I ended up with 4 half-pint jars plus a bit more than half a jar to put in the fridge. This is a small batch, granted, but 4 half-pint jars will fit in the canning discovery kit, allowing you to use a smaller pot and boil less water. I believe that 8 4oz jars will also fit in a single rack in most canners. The recipes include intriguing and unusual flavors such as "cherry-port" and "ginger-vanilla-rhubarb" jams, as well as some more savory-sounding offerings like "basil-mint-plum jam" and "rosemary-wine jelly." There are also plenty of classics like "sweet cherry jam" and "apple jelly." Most recipes require 1-1.5 cups of sugar, but there are two all-fruit recipes near the front that offer vast substitution options to be used alone or in combination, allowing one to make nearly any kind of all-fruit jam. I made these recipes: Sweet cherry jam, chocolate-cherry preserves, all-fruit cherry-peach jam, cherry-lemon marmalade, cherry-port preserves. The sweet cherry jam was slightly too sweet for my taste; it was full of classic cherry flavor, but I prefer tart jams. I believe it will appeal to many people who want a milder, sweet flavored cherry jam. The all-fruit jam was tarter and more to my taste. I may end up eating it out of the jar by the spoonful. The cherry-lemon marmalade was also delightfully tart - a bit on the sweet side for marmalade, with just enough bitterness to be interesting. It's a gateway marmalade, not for those who prefer intense bitter flavor. The chocolate-cherry preserves have just the right amount of cinnamon and cayenne. I love their complex, slightly spicy flavor. The cherry-port preserves are even better. They belong on vanilla ice cream. Make an extra batch because when you give them as gifts the recipients will stage a raid on your house at night to get more. I'm looking forward to making a lot more jam, because I want to try pretty much everything in this book. Obviously I was focused on cherry recipes this weekend, but I have every reason to assume that the non-cherry recipes are just as good.

This is not available locally so i have bought their pectin in the large size so i can put up my apples, grapes, feijoa, lemons, etc. in a much more healthy way by using this product, and less sugar!

Now that we've switched to Pomona's we find canning ever so much easier. This book makes understanding the method of using Pomona's much easier. It's a learning curve but after you get the basic lay of the land, so to speak, it becomes much easier to understand how to tweak a recipe successfully. We have had no failed recipes and even better, everything set and tastes awesome .We love the ease and health benefits of being able to go low or no sugar. I won't use any other pectin again. This cookbook, if you're switching to Pomona's, is essential. The pictures are vibrant and the information is invaluable. Best cookbook on canning with Pomona's we have.

Makes jams/jellies with or without sugar.

In today's world of mass-produced food, with extreme amounts of sugar in just about anything you can buy, this book is a Godsend. I use it all the time and don't know what I would do without it.